Ex-boyfriends
by ris91
Summary: After the happenings of season 3 ep. 5, Felicity and Laurel have a conversation about ex-boyfriends, to Oliver's dismay. Spoilers for "the Secret Origin of Felicity Smoak". Laurel may be a bit OOC but I like her this way.


Felicity swiveled in her chair as she pounded away at her keyboard, muttering to herself, "I swear teenage me had the worse taste in men."

A laugh from the direction of the nearby desk made her pause and glance at Laurel who was sitting there with a self-deprecating smirk on her face, "Now I'm not sure about that, after all when I was a teenager I dated Ollie"

Felicity laughed in response and conceded "Point. Pre-island Oliver didn't seem to get the concept of being a boyfriend but at least when he was presumed dead it wasn't because he faked his own death".

"True" Laurel countered "but he did leave me to run away with my little sister"

"Yeah that was a particularly douchetastic move." At Laurel's surprised face she continued, "What? It's a word and if it isn't it ought to be. Anyway I still have you beat in the bad ex-boyfriend category. I mean Cooper only returned from the dead because he needed me to help him with a heist….that he was too stupid to pull off on his own."

"Yeah well Ollie returned to put on green leather and shoot arrows into people."

"Exactly, your ex returned to be a hero, mine returned as a villain. I win… or lose" Felicity scrunched up her nose "this is not a crown I particularly want but it appears I am the Queen of making bad teenage boyfriend decisions."

"Huh" said Laurel "I never really thought about it that way, you may have a point, it's good to know you actually have flaws"

"What? You're joking, sometimes I'm nothing but a walking, talking disaster, where on earth would you get the idea that I've no flaws?"

"Well to hear my dad, Sara and Oliver talk, I'd swear you walk on water"

"They're just grateful that I'm using my computer skills for good and not evil"

"I'm not sure about that. What are you doing anyway?"

"Oh I'm setting up a programme to keep track of Cooper. I know that he's in custody now but since the last time he was free he kidnapped and tried to kill me I'd feel better if I knew where he was at all times. This way if he's released for any reason an alert will be sent to the computers at the foundry here as well as to my phone."

"Set it up to send to all of our phones" Oliver interjected and Felicity visibly started. She'd gotten so caught up in her conversation with Laurel that for a moment she'd forgotten that Oliver, Roy and Dig were all training at the other end of the room, hearing very word that they were saying.

"Sure," she murmured before spinning around to face the screens. Maintaining her cool around Oliver after the disastrous date that wasn't, was still a work in progress and she'd found it was usually easier if she didn't look directly at him. Usually. Now, after the conversation that she'd just had with Laurel and with Oliver hovering over her shoulder as she typed she felt hyper aware of him.

Thankfully Laurel chose that moment to interrupt, "Is that him?" she asked leaning closer, as Cooper's picture came up on screen.

"Yeah"

"He's cute"

Oliver left his place at Felicity's shoulder with a grunt and returned to training.

"I always thought so. Now he's just like the other guys that tried to kill me."

"Other guys have tried to kill you?"

"Yeah others have tried but usually it was because of my involvement in arrow business, this is the first time someone tried to kill me just because I was Felicity Smoak. I should be proud I guess. If I were a superhero, I'd call him my nemesis."

"You work with a team of masked men to keep the city safe from crime and you don't think you're a superhero?"

"Well yeah I work with them but they do the actual saving. I'm tech support."

"Felicity" Dig remarked "of course you're a hero."

With her eyes full of laughter, Felicity responded, "Of course you'd say that, you love me Dig. You can't be trusted, you'd never want to hurt my feelings."

"So from that explanation, you'd never believe anyone who loves you if they call you a hero?" Laurel asked and at Felicity's nod, she smiled and said "well then by a process of elimination there's just one person here who could convince you otherwise."

Felicity swallowed hard and Oliver froze at Laurel's words, both sharing one horrible thought, _she couldn't mean him could she?_

Not picking up on the sudden tenseness in the lair, Laurel continued "Since I'm the only person here who's not a member of your team then I guess it should come from me. I think you've done sufficiently heroic things to deserve a nemesis."

If Felicity's resulting smile was a bit too bright because that potential minefield of awkwardness hadn't been triggered, Laurel didn't notice.

"Huh, well Cooper Seldon consider yourself my nemesis."

Felicity leaned back in her chair and pursued her lips, "wait does that mean that you think I should trust your opinion because you don't like me?"

Laurel laughed, "No far from it. It's just we haven't know each other long enough for me to fall into the category of people who you think love you enough to lie to you."

"True but give me time."

At Laurel's arched eyebrow, Felicity smiled and said "I'm very lovable. I'll creep up and you and before you know it you'll be lying to spare my feelings too."

Laurel snorted, "Maybe, I will now that I know you're not so perfect"

Wait did gorgeous Laurel actually snort? Huh. Felicity did not know what to do with that. Maybe Laurel was not so perfect either.

"You know you're right. It's a lot easier to like someone when they don't seem so perfect."

"Amen. I mean I certainly like you a lot better now that I know we share the same horrible taste in men."

A beat of awkward silence followed and then everything seemed to happen at once. Oliver stalked off to the bathroom, Felicity's eyes rounded, Digg let out a strangled sound and Roy just started laughing hysterically.

Laurel just stared at them in utter confusion "what?"


End file.
